Founder of Jim’s Gym steps up to support nursing home guests to be active

Personal trainer James Hilton has pledged to ‘give back’ to his Cotswold community by donating time – and fundraising - for Horsfall House in Minchinhampton, a not-for-profit nursing home.

James, who specialises in working with the over-55s and recently launched an online gym for that age group Jim’s Gym, has chosen Horsfall House as his charitable partner for 2024.

Horsfall House celebrates its 30th anniversary this year after being set up as a charity to serve older people in its community. It comprises of a specialist nursing home for up to 44 residents, which includes dementia care, a thriving day centre and a home care service.

The idea for the home came about years earlier after Dr Chris Booth, a local GP, set up a day care centre for older people in Minchinhampton in a local community room in the 1980s. He saw there was a lack of support for this age group and wanted to do something about it. Later, one of his supporters, Miss Jean Horsfall, donated land on which to build a purpose-built centre and a campaign was launched to fund and build Horsfall House.

James plans to visit the home and run monthly free sessions for residents and guests to help them keep active. He also aims to raise much-needed funds by running in at least one marathon in 2024.

“I’m honoured to be able to support this amazing local charity which has been serving its own community for more than 30 years,” James said.

“I’m experienced in working with older adults, which enables me to give back to those who cannot easily access tailored exercise services but could benefit immensely from some extra movement. Not only for the physical benefits but cognitively too. As important as anything else, I relish the idea of making people smile through the power of games for an hour or two every month.”

Horsfall House’s head of marketing and fundraising, David, is thrilled to have James’ support.

“We rely heavily on the goodwill and generosity of people just like James to continue to run our services on a not-for-profit basis as we have done for the past 30 years.

“James’ experience in getting older people up and moving will be a great asset to our already diverse activities portfolio. The fact he is also looking to fundraise for us, is equally generous and we are always open to partnering with other local businesses and groups, both in services they are able to offer, but also through fundraising partnerships. For example, £900 generated from fundraising would cover the costs of upgrading a bed and would go a long way to improving our residents’ quality of life.”

James moved with his own family to the Stroud area more than four years ago after leaving behind a career in sales. He re-trained as a personal trainer and now specialises in working with the over-55s who wish to stay active, train for specific events, recover from injury or illness through Jim’s Gym and in person.

* Image shows James Hilton with David, head of fundraising and marketing at Horsfall House in Minchinhampton. James has chosen the home as his 2024 charity partner. For more information about Horsfall House visit https://horsfallhouse.co.uk